


Allie's family

by darkmoore



Series: The life of Allie Sheppard [2]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Birthday, Domestic, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-03-04 10:36:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13362852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkmoore/pseuds/darkmoore
Summary: Seven months after John found her, Allie celebrates her birthday on Atlantis and Allie has some questions.





	Allie's family

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was inspired by [THIS PICTURE ](https://unsplash.com/photos/M01DfkOqz7I) and was written for the [picfor1000](https://picfor1000.dreamwidth.org/) writing challenge on Dreamwidth. It's set in the same universe as last year's picfor1000 story. Massive thanks go - as always - to [Brumeier](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier) for beta, hand holding and all around awesomeness. Thank you, Bru! I appreciate it!

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Allie, happy birthday to you!” everyone cheers and claps as Allie blows out the candles on her birthday cake with a huge grin. There are hugs and well wishes and Allie almost knocks over one of the sparklers because she is bubbling with so much excited energy. John isn’t sure how they are supposed to get her to go to bed later.

Rodney comes over and slips an arm around John’s waist, watching their daughter celebrate her first birthday on Atlantis. It’s been a turbulent seven months since John found out about her and brought her home. They had needed time to adjust but things had settled down eventually. 

“I think we did well. She’s having a blast,” Rodney observes, and John has to agree – Allie looks happy and carefree in a way they have seldom seen her.

John nods. “Yeah. I think we’re gonna be just fine. She’s happy here, with us. Atlantis is good for her.”

“You are good for her,” Rodney replies, and John kisses his temple affectionately. Rodney has been a lot more patient and understanding than John had dared to hope. He and Allie make a great team; she accepted Rodney as her other parent almost instantly.

Allie starts to open her presents and chats away with her guests, and John and Rodney are content to keep watching her for a while.

It is much later, after the last party guests have left and Allie is already wearing her PJs, when she comes over to John and sits next to him on the couch, one of her birthday cards in hand. John recognizes it as the one Dave sent. It had been brought from Earth in the latest mail run.

She hands it to him so he can read it. Dave and his family send their birthday wishes and Dave issues an invitation for the summer holidays so he can finally meet his niece and Allie can meet her cousins. It sounds innocent enough, but something about the words must have upset Allie because there is a look on her face John has come to dread. It usually means she is going to cry within the next couple of minutes.

“What’s the matter, sweetheart?” John asks and gently brushes a lock of hair from her forehead.

“Uncle Dave. He says he finally wants to meet me,” she says as if that would explain anything.

“Yeah, and your cousins are excited to meet you, too,” John replies, not sure where the conversation is heading.

Allie sighs. “You didn’t know, did you? About me, I mean. Or that I even existed. That’s why it took you so long to find me and get me out. You didn’t know.” She drops her gaze to the card in her hands and John feels unease curl in his stomach.

“Allie, sweetheart, I-” John breaks off, at a loss what to say. He doesn’t know how to tell her the truth. A truth that will only serve to hurt her. But he can’t lie to her, either.

“Your mom and I lost contact and I searched for her but couldn’t find her,” John settles on saying. “So no, you’re right. I didn’t know about you.”

Allie nods, still avoiding John’s eyes. “So that night, when I was so mad at you and yelled at you … I screamed at you for not getting me out of that foster home sooner … the one where they beat me … you didn’t defend yourself. Not even when I said you had failed me. And that I hate you.”

John swallows hard as he remembers that fight they’d had. He’d learned a lot about Allies life before Atlantis, that night. And despite the fact that he couldn’t possibly have known about Allie’s existence, he still had felt like he really had failed her.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” John soothes and kisses the top of her head as she leans against him. “I wasn’t angry at you. I think I needed to hear that, so I could understand better what you’ve been through. I know you don’t hate me.”

John made sure that her former foster parents paid for what they have done to his daughter. Allie doesn’t need to know that, though.

“I’m sorry, Daddy,” Allie whispers. She sounds small and miserable, and John once more wishes he could just take all of her hurt and problems onto himself. She is way too young to be burdened like that.

“You have nothing to apologize for, sweetheart,” John replies. “You were right to be angry about what happened to you. If I could’ve gotten you out earlier, I would’ve. But I couldn’t. We can’t change that any more. But we can make new, happy memories, right? We’re a family now and we’ll make up for lost time. In summer we’ll go visit your Uncle Dave and his family and we’ll have tons of fun, promise.” John hugs her and kisses her head again.

“I’d like that, Daddy,” she says and there is hope in her eyes. She scrambles to her knees on the couch, flings her arms around his neck and hugs him tight. Her whispered “I love you, Daddy,” brings tears to John’s eyes.

“I love you too, sweetheart,” John replies and out of the corner of his eye John sees Rodney approach. He must have known Allie would need some time alone with him and stayed clear of the living room area.

“Hey, Birthday girl, are you ready to get tucked in? What story are we gonna read tonight? Or are you too old for a bedtime story now?” Rodney asks in mock horror.

Allie giggles and smiles at him. “Don’t be silly, Papa. You won’t get off the hook that easily. I’ll pick the book!” She slips her hand into Rodney’s as they walk towards her room.

John will join them in a moment, thanking every deity he knows for his newfound family.


End file.
